Back to the Future: Intuit Financial Services Now Digital Insight

The meaning of the Thoma Bravo acquisition of Intuit’s Financial Services group is just this: the focus is back on the financial institution, said Jose Resendiz, a vice president at the company.

His point is that, inside Intuit, the focus is centered on the consumer. As part of private equity fund Thoma Bravo, Resendiz suggested, there will be greater emphasis on what financial institutions want and what best serves their needs.

The merger also proved that even in financial tech, what’s old can be new again, as the one-time Intuit Financial Services group now has been renamed Digital Insight, a company formed in 1995 and a pioneer in online banking solutions.

Intuit bought Digital Insight – for a reported $1.35 billion – in 2007. Founded by former staffers of credit union core processor XP Systems, Digital Insight served as the backbone of what then became known as Intuit Financial Services.

In a press statement, Resendiz said, “We will remain focused on creating and delivering solutions that help mid-market financial institutions be at the center of improving their customers’ financial lives so bankers can engage in deep, profitable relationships. Working with Thoma Bravo enables us to further enhance our focus on meeting the business needs of financial institutions.”

In an interview, he elaborated, “Our customers are excited that we can go back to focusing on the financial institutions. They are excited we are going back to our roots.”

He admitted that at least some customers had a concern: Can this newly independent entity sustain the innovation it had become known for inside Intuit? Said Resendiz, “The reality is that the innovation came from our employees who are still with us.”

Resendiz said Digital Insight now has around 650 employees. And around 600 mobile banking apps in the Apple Apps Store and Google Play.

An emphasis in the near-term, Resendiz said, will be finding more ways for financial institutions to generate incremental revenue in the online and mobile channels. “That is what they tell us they want. We are looking at ways to build in cross-selling and upselling opportunities.”

As for Finance Works – the personal financial management tool that went to Thoma Bravo in the acquisition – its future vis a vis Mint, the PFM retained by Intuit, remains unsettled. Although Inuit had indicated some months ago that it planned to offer Mint directly to financial institutions, that may be in flux, post the spinoff of Intuit Financial Services. “We are in talks about possibly offering Mint to our FIs,” said Resendiz.